Advise Needed- Dana 44 Or 60 Front Axle

[ALASKA ALUMINUM BEAR]

I have been through the ringer with just what axle to run up front and have been looked down on because i went with a dana 44...
this has been a endless discussion with the 4x4 click of alaska and i need some advise on just what is wrong on running a dana 44 up front....

my 86 suburban works and plays hard for a living-and i tow a 12,000lb trailer 40,000 plus miles a year,,,running 36 inch tires....and i have never had a problem with my 44....can any dana 60 lovers tell me just why i should be running a 60 up front as well....i run a 60 in the rear with spicer 70 axles;;but reall do not want all that much up front....

any advise would be helpfull,,,i reall do not want to get a thousand mile into the yukon on dirt roads and blow my front axle..

big thanks
alaska a bear

[hilbilly]

Unless your climbing rocks, spinn'en 44's in a bog or drag'en a 30,000lb weight transfer sled with 800lbs of tractor weights hanging off the front, a D44 will work just fine.

[Yukon Jack]

How do you use this vehicle - and what vehicle are we talking about. That will help us discuss your needs.

Sure a Dana 60 is great, but for alot of us, it is not necessary. I will jump on one if I ever see a bargain, but given how I use my trucks, it just isn't necessary for me.

[gn4u2c]

Save your money I have been to countless mud bogs, rocktrail rides, and drunken weekend field/firetrail rides and have never broke a 44 up front on my gmc and it has 130k on it. I have however blown the hubs a few times but warn replaces them for free so I just keep spare in the truck.

[1969 GMC]

dana 60's are nice to have, but they are getting hard to find. I was lucky and found a Dodge version in the JY for $150, which is a steal. if i had wanted a dana 44, I would have been happy to pay $150 for one.
It needs rebuilt, but what the heck...you only live once.

Also, I currently have a dana 44 with closed knuckles and drum brakes, so going dana 60 will upgrade to discs, open knuckles, and a lot bigger u joints, which is a pretty good upgrade if you ask me.

one other advantage I can think of dana 60's over the dana 44 is that most use kingpins instead of balljoints, which are a lot stronger (and easier to replace when 30+ years old from what I hear).